Sept. 28, 2011
Stephanie L. Schierholz
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-4997
stephanie.schierholz@nasa.gov
Veronica McGregor
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
818-354-9452
veronica.c.mcgregor@jpl.nasa.gov
RELEASE: 11-327
150 OF NASA'S TWITTER FOLLOWERS WILL BE INVITED TO MARS ROVER LAUNCH
WASHINGTON -- NASA will host a two-day launch Tweetup for 150 of its
Twitter followers on Nov. 23 and 25 at the agency's Kennedy Space
Center in Florida. The Tweetup is expected to culminate in the launch
of the Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity rover aboard a United Launch
Alliance Atlas V 541 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The
launch window open is scheduled to open at 10:21 a.m. EDT on Nov. 25.
The Tweetup will provide NASA's social media followers with the
opportunity to tour Kennedy Space Center; speak with scientists and
engineers; and, if all goes as scheduled, view the spacecraft launch.
The event also will provide participants the opportunity to meet
fellow tweeps and members of NASA's social media team.
Curiosity's arrival at the Red Planet is anticipated in August 2012 at
Gale crater. During the two-year prime mission, the rover will
investigate whether a selected area of Mars offered environmental
conditions favorable for microbial life and for preserving evidence
about life if it existed.
Mars Science Laboratory is the fourth space mission launching this
year managed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif.
The first three are Aquarius, launched June 10 to study ocean
salinity; Juno, launched Aug. 5 to study the origins and interior of
Jupiter; and the twin GRAIL orbiters, which departed for the moon on
Sept. 10.
Launch management for the mission is the responsibility of NASA's
Launch Services Program at Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
Tweetup registration opens at noon on Wed, Oct. 5, and closes at noon
on Fri., Oct. 7. NASA will randomly select 150 participants from
online registrations.
For more information and rules about the Tweetup and registration,
visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/tweetup
For information about connecting and collaborating with NASA, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/connect
For information about the mission, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/msl
and
http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/msl/
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